This is Part 2 in a series of remembrances of former Mayor Gil Weidenfeld, who died on July 4 at the age of 93. The following article, by Sandra Lange which first appeared in the News Review on February 10, 1994, reflects on his years on the city council. Omitted is a section devoted to his thoughts of running for the County Council. He did not serve on that council.
Gil Weidenfeld, private citizen, is a little lost these days. After 22 years on the Greenbelt City Council, 14 of them as mayor, he misses the meetings he attended at least three nights a week, the urgent telephone calls from citizens, the strategy sessions where he was a key player. He is proud of his role in purchasing parkland, building a new school and constructing an indoor swimming pool.
Looking back on his political life, he smiles at the parochial interests that caused him to first run for the city council in September 1971. “I wanted a community center for Springhill Lake,” he says. “I lived there at the time, and there were no recreation facilities. Plus, there was a major highway dividing the city that made it difficult for Springhill Lake residents to use the recreation facilities in the core of Greenbelt.”
As he and others elected from Springhill Lake achieved their goal, Weidenfeld found that he enjoyed being on the city council. He also developed a broader range of interests. He supported the development of senior citizen housing, and views the construction of Green Ridge House as one of his highest achievements. “Green Ridge House is a model for the state, and I feel real good about it,” he affirms.
He lost only one battle, he says, while on the city council, and that was the first referendum in the 1970s, on construction of the indoor swimming pool. Two decades later, the indoor pool is a reality in which he feels enormous pride.
Center School Controversy
The biggest controversy during his tenure in office was the renovation of Center School as opposed to building a new school in the north end of town. “This issue caused splits in families and differences between friends,” he says. “It was one of those issues where no one was right or wrong, but rather it was which decision served the community’s interest more,” he reflected. In the end, the community voted to build a new school and turn Center School into a community center. Weidenfeld regrets that he is no longer on the city council, as it shaped the final conversion of Center School into a community center.
He is proud of his role in renovating Roosevelt Center and building the new police station. He enjoyed the projects associated with the city’s celebration of its 50th anniversary in 1987, which he describes as a high point.
Weidenfeld praises the work of the city councils over the years. He views the former councils as generally harmonious, reflecting the continuity that prevailed from year to year. With never more than one new council member elected at any particular time, that new person generally went along with the prevailing positions, he said.
He describes the personality differences and divergent viewpoints as healthy. “Some issues get personal, but over the years most city councils worked well.” He states that after the final vote, the dissenting council members usually came together to support the decisions of the majority.
Weidenfeld would like to see more involvement in city issues by Greenbelt East and Springhill Lake residents. He thinks the new community center and the indoor pool will draw these diverse communities together. “I want to bring others into the city. I want them to feel enthusiastic to serve on advisory boards and community organizations.”
Greenbelt Is Great
“We have a caring community and a high level of service,” he continues. “I haven’t found any place as great as Greenbelt. Even people you disagree with on issues do so out of strong feelings of service to the community,” he adds.
From caring about one part of town having its own recreation center, he has moved toward a view of the city not unlike that of its creator, Franklin Delano Roosevelt. In 1936 Roosevelt said, “I have seen the blueprints for this project and have been greatly interested, but the actual sight itself exceeds anything I ever dreamed of.”
